I Didn't Learn the First Time
by haikomochan
Summary: What if Zuko had spoken out against Azula's plan to burn down the whole Earth Kingdom? Now it's the day of black sun, and Zuko is Azula's prisoner. Will the gang help him? T to be safe, in the process of getting rewritten...
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: I don't own Avatar: the Last Airbender, otherwise the storyline would be constantly changed.

_Note: Zuko's thoughts are in italics. _

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I Didn't Learn the First Time

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Zuko looks out the window and stares vacantly at a mountain deep in thought. Mai implies, "Zuko, I don't get why you're so riled up about not being invited to a stupid, all-day war meeting... remember what happened at the last one you went to!"

"I know, I'll never forget," Zuko replied "It's just that ever since I returned to the Fire Nation I've been feeling guilty. I betrayed my uncle, even though all he ever did was love and support me. And in Ba Sing Sei, I sided with Azula and took down the avatar, even though he saved my life twice! I'm just overwhelmed with guilt."

Mai stares at Zuko and says, "Jeez Zuko, I didn't ask for your life story. Besides… didn't you already get your honor back?" Zuko keeps staring at the horizon.

"I don't know…" Zuko mumbles and sighs._ "I just wish I could set things right"_

The door creaks open. A servant enters the room and announces, "My apologizes, Prince Zuko, but Firelord Ozai is waiting for your arrival at the war meeting."

"_Dad wants me there?" _"Umm… sure," Zuko responds, "I just need to get ready."

* * *

The prince strolls up the stairs and sits to the right of Ozai. The meeting begins. After about an hour of discussing on how they should deal with the invasion force, they talk about the rebellions in the Earth kingdom. Ozai asks Zuko, "Zuko, you were in the Earth kingdom for a while. What is the best way to deal with them?"

Zuko declares, "The people of the Earth kingdom are proud and strong. They can endure anything as long as they have hope."

"Yes, you're right," Ozai opines, "We need to destroy their hope."

Zuko turns his head to Ozai and stammers "That's not exactly what I-"

Azula cuts in and concludes "I think you should take their precious hope and their land and burn it all to the ground."

"Yes, great idea, on the day of Sozin's Comet, we will burn down the Earth kingdom and a new world will be bo-"

"What are you crazy!" Zuko refutes and stands up to his full height. Everyone stares at him. "You can't just wipe out a whole race of people! That's genocide! Dammit! This is just like when Firelord Sozin destroyed the Air Nomads! It's just not right! I actually congratulate the people who have rebellions, because they're fighting for what is right!" A couple generals start to glare at him. Zuko continues, "We learned as kids that this war was a way of spreading our greatness to the world. What a great lie. Do you know what we're giving them! We're giving them an era of fear, destruction, hatred, and poverty! How can you call that great! I am sick and tired of us being selfish, greedy, and unjust! This madness needs to end! This war needs to end peacefully with an area of peace, love, kindness, and happiness!" The whole assembly is shocked, outraged, and pondering about his little speech.

Ozai has a bitter look of outrage and disgust splattered all over his face, and Azula wears one of her famous, devious smiles. Ozai pulls out a knife and slashes Zuko's throat and kicks him, which causes Zuko to cascade down the stairs. Ozai yells, "Didn't you learn your lesson the first time! Grrrr… Guards! Get him out of my sight!"

Blood is what Zuko gags out of his mouth when he collides with the ground. Zuko winces with blood oozing down his neck and mouth and smirks slightly._ "I guess I didn't." _The prince gazes at the guards' feet that are approaching him.

"Azula you are in charge of his punishment. I never want to see his scarred face again! Make him suffer miserably!" demands Ozai.

"With pleasure." Azula smiles.

The now ex-prince – again – is kicked by a guard, put in handcuffs and dragged out of the room. "Ahh, Zuzu. You never learn," Azula mumbles to herself and laughs.

* * *

Mai is waiting outside for the meeting to be over. She can't wait to see Zuko. Suddenly, she hears yelling and a loud, resounding thud. Mai murmurs, "Okay, what is going on in there…" Mai becomes slightly worried. A little later two guards emerge with a limp Zuko. He has blood dripping down his mouth and neck. "Zuko…" Mai mutters to herself, "I thought you promised me you wouldn't do anything stupid!" A warm, salty tear rolls down her face from the corner of her eye.

* * *

Zuko wakes up on a hard, stone floor. His face is covered in dried blood and anguish; he is chained to the floor with his hands bound behind his back with rope. "_Uhg… Why am I chained up!"_ Zuko squirms in his manacles.

Azula says, "So Zuzu, are you going to talk?" He attempts to speak but only coughs up blood. She puts on her grin and laughs, "Oh wait, I almost forgot, you can't! Hahaha!"

"_Huh! Why can't I speak!_" Zuko thrashes around more and writhes in pain. _"Why does everything hurt… And… More importantly, who left me alone with Azula!"_ His eyes dart around franticly.

"So Zuzu, do you want your knife back?" Azula provokes poking him with her foot, "If you want it you have to take it from my hand." She waves it right in front of his face with a mocking grin.

"_Wait… I was in that war meeting,"_ Zuko thinks as he tries to recollect the past events, _"And… I spoke out… against Azula's plan and…" _Zuko's eyes widen in realization, "_Wait this is the bunker! For the day of black sun, Oh just great!" _Zuko closes his eyes and frowns; he lowers his head, _"Ugh… well maybe I try could help the avatar, if he forgives me... Ugh… I'm so sorry…"_ Zuko reclines against the wall with his eyes shut.

Azula breaks the ex-prince's train of thought and announces, "Zuzu, since I'm bored we're going to play a game. It's called 'stab Zuzu with his knife.' Let's start!" The knife slashes Zuko and causes him to bleed from the cringes every time the blade cuts him while Azula merrily slashes away.

* * *

"Toph, I need you to metal bend that door." Aang requested.

"Sure thing, Twinkletoes!" Toph declared. Toph stops for a moment and says, "Wait Guys! I don't know why, but there are two people in there and the one on the chair feels too light to be a full grown man, and the other guy on the floor has a weird heartbeat."

Silence shrouds the whole group, then Sokka whines, "Toph! Maybe the firelord's just anorexic! Hurry up and open the door! We need to defeat the Firelord before the eclipse ends!"

"Okay Sir Whinesalot!" Toph jokes. She repeatedly jabs the door, then licks her fingers, and rips the door apart. They burst into the room, except they don't find Ozai...

Azula smiles and states, "I had a theory you were alive." Zuko lifts his head and looks at the visitors with a glazed, empty stare with blood visibly dripping down his arms and face. "Too bad Zuzu isn't much of a talker."

Aang, Toph, and Sokka shout, "Azula! Zuko!" They are shell-shocked.

* * *

_**P.S. **__Yeah! I rewrote it! :D It's 1,326 words and 4 1/8 pages. You wouldn't believe what inspired me to do this, in school we read a story about bobsleds and people dying… really inspiring right?_


	2. Choices

_**Disclaimer: **__I don't own Avatar: The Last Airbender, otherwise there'd be too many changes in the storyline. (like every ten seconds.) Notes: Thoughts are in italics. Summary: It is the previous chapter._ -

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I Didn't Learn the First Time

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Recap- "Okay Sir Whinesalot!" Toph jokes. She repeatedly jabs the door, then licks her fingers, and rips the door apart. They burst into the room, except they don't find Ozai.

Azula smiles and states, "I had a theory you were alive." Zuko lifts his head and looks at the visitors with a glazed, empty stare. "Too bad Zuzu isn't much of a talker."

Aang, Toph, and Sokka shout, "Azula! Zuko!" They are shell-shocked.

* * *

Aang yells, "Where is Ozai!" He positions himself with his staff in an offensive position.

Azula asks sarcastically, "What? Am I not good enough for you?"

Sokka groans and grabs his hair. "So we're supposed fight Zuko and Azula now?"

"Hate to break it to you but… if we're supposed to fight Zuko, then why is he tied up?" Toph questions.

"Uh, well…" Sokka mumbles not knowing what to say. They look at Zuko. His hair is unkempt and matted against his forehead, and his shirt is torn in many places and blood stains. His hands are bound tightly together with rope. He is chained to the wall in a way that he is only able to sit or lie down awkwardly. They all wonder what happened.

"Sokka, Toph has a point." Aang contradicts, looking at Zuko with some uneasiness.

Azula gets tired of their little conversation, so to bring them back to Earth she cuts in and asks, "Don't you want to know where the firelord is?"

"Yes! We do!" Sokka wails, while flinging his arms outward.

"Well I'm not telling." Azula sneers. Sokka moans and tenses his arms towards himself.

Zuko stares at his knife, which is mocking him by being five feet away. Azula had thrown his knife over there an hour or so ago after growing tired of playing 'stab Zuzu with his knife'; the blade is covered with Zuko's blood. He remembers its inscription. _"Never give up without a fight," Zuko thought, "Wow my sister is the worst sister ever, not only can she mess up my knife, but she can do the same to me in the process... If only it was closer, then I could free myself and show the avatar where my dad is." Zuko sulks, "Ozai, the worst father in the history of fathers."_

Zuko is deep in thought when Toph encases Azula in a cocoon of earth and jumps a little at the sudden event. Toph notices an object of what could be a knife and inquires, "_Maybe if I just so happen to 'accidentally' earthbend that 'knife' behind the guy's hands facing upwards maybe he, oh wait that 'Zuko' could free himself. He doesn't seem that well… Besides, he might know where the firelord is." _She stealthily earthbends the knife blade-up behind Zuko's hands; he is the only other person, besides Toph of course, that notices and cautiously starts filing away the rope binding his hands together, wincing a little from his multiple cuts.

Aang demands Azula, "You better tell us where Ozai is!"

Toph points at Azula and threatens, "You'd better tell the truth! I can tell if you're lying!"

"Try me." Azula states, "I'm a purple, forty foot tall platypus bear."

"Okay you're pretty good." Toph says, "But still consider telling the truth."

The earth around Azula cracks. Their mouths hang wide open. Azula mocks, "You know I brought some souvenirs from Ba Sing Se, Dai Lee agents." Two Dai Lee clad in dark green robes and big jade disc-like hats jump from the ceiling. Azula smirks.

The ex-prince had cut through his hand bindings and was almost done with the chain was attaching him to the wall. When he finished cutting the restraint, he thought, _"Yes! Finally free." _He sheathed his knife and put it in the top part of his bloody, tattered traveling clothes; he staggers to get up.

The agents shoot rocks at Aang and Sokka, but Aang made those rocks crumble by earthbending them in half with his staff in one fluid sweep. He jumps up and sends out a gale of wind. The attackers are sent backwards, but the agents stick the landing using their earthbending. Toph shoots stones at Azula, but she dodges them by flipping in the air. Zuko gets up and barely keeps up with Sokka, who was already behind everybody else.

They enter a hallway. The fighting stops when Toph shouts, "Guys! Wait! She's only stalling!" Zuko finally arrives where the group, stops running, and catches his breath, panting heavily and coughing a little.

A rock restraint flies towards Azula and glues her to the wall. Azula smiles and says, in an attempt to turn around the situation, "You know my favorite prisoner – Sukki was it – she kept saying how you would come and rescue her, but now she has finally given up on you."

Sokka in outrage yells, almost in tears, "Where is Sukki!" An arm holds him back and points to the right. Sokka growls at Azula.

Aang glances where Zuko is pointing. "Sokka," Aang responds, "I think Zuko's trying to show us where the firelord is." Zuko nods his head weakly.

"Well hurry up! We only have two minutes!" Sokka yells looking at his special watch, which was ticking with every second that passed. Azula glares at all of them and growls.

* * *

Zuko leads them through a hallway and down a staircase. "Only one minute!" Sokka moans. They dash and burst into the room. "Aha-" Sokka then gulped when he saw the guards. In twenty seconds, Toph had pinned half of the guards to the ceiling. Zuko, Sokka, and Aang knocked out ten guards. Twenty seconds later, all the guards were down, mainly thanks to Toph and Aang.

Ozai sees Zuko and yells, "I thought I said I never wanted to see you again!" Aang, Sokka, and Toph turn their heads toward Zuko slightly shocked. "Boy, you traitor, you can never stop disgracing your family and nation." Ozai made lightning by moving his arms and shot it at Zuko. The gAang's eyes widened.

Zuko remembered what his uncle had taught him and took his stance. The blue lightning traveled to his hand and raced down his arm. Inward, downward, and outward he moved his arms, like a waterbender, and as the lightning moved through his body, it went out the other hand. The lightning zipped above Ozai and lit the firenation insignia tapestry behind him on fire. They run out of the room, and Zuko shows them the quickest way out, and he deflects fire from the guards, as well as he can. While Toph makes an enormous, stone shield, encasing them and moving upward.

* * *

They make it outside the volcano. _"Should I show them where Uncle is or tell them…"_ Zuko thought. Zuko's eyes widened as he remembered,_ "The airships!"_ He nudges Sokka and points to the left.

"Okay, listen, Zuko, if you need to go potty I need to tell you I have a strict policy about there being no pot-"

Sokka was cut off by Aang. Aang was staring where Zuko was pointing "Uhhmm… Sokka? I think we have a problem." Sokka turns and looks and sees a whole line of airships.

"Uhm, what guys what are you so worried about?" Toph asks.

"Huge line of airships! Can't you- " Toph shakes her head. "Oh right. Ughhh… Just great! First we run away from the firelord, and now THIS! AHHHHH!" Sokka screams to no one, basically ripping out his hair.

They hurry towards Appa, Zuko lags behind everyone else. Zuko staggers to the rest and encounters a wave of vertigo. _"Dizzy…"_ Zuko thought, feeling lightheaded. He tries to shake it off, but then, he sways to the left, almost losing balance. His vision turns fuzzy, being consumed by an encroaching darkness.

The others were just about go on Appa when Toph's blind eyes widened. "Uhm… guys I think Zuko's gonna-" She is cut off by a loud thud."Yeah do that…" They run over to Zuko. The firebender looked rather pale, and his hair was stuck to his forehead with sweat. Aang notices a slash on Zuko's neck that was covered in dirt, dried blood and some blood was still trickling out of it, and there was a sickly yellow glob forming over it.

Aang reached down and felt the firebender's forehead. _"Ow!" _Aang thought, retracting his hand, _"He's really hot." _Aang announces worriedly, "Guys, I think Zuko might have a fever."

_**

* * *

**_

P.S.

_Am I making the characters in character? Please read & review. 3 ½ pages! And 1,617 words! Yeah! I rewrote this! :D You wouldn't believe what inspired me to write this, in school we had to read a story about bobsleds and people dying… That is really inspiring, right!**?**_


	3. What to Do Now?

_**Disclaimer:**__ I don't own Avatar: the Last Airbender. If I owned Zuko ummm… and he was real, that'd be slavery I think, which is illicit. __**Notes: **__Thoughts are in italics and sound effects, too. __**Other Notes: **__Sorry for the late update. I've been playing the Sims 3 and 2and making things for the Sims 3 and have been busy with school (Ughhh... Science Fair… -_-). And I also got a HUGE writer's block for how other peeps are gonna react to Zuko. And I'm a master procrastinator and I've been uninspired and lazy. Enjoy this rewritten chapter. By the way thanks for the reviews._

**Summary: **What if Zuko had spoken out against Azula's plan?

* * *

I Didn't Learn the First Time

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They all gather around the unconscious firebender and stare at him silently. "Well that's not good… The jerkbender passed out." Sokka said, still staring at him.

Aang, still crouching next to Zuko, stands up and looks at Toph and Sokka. He asks, "Uhm… Can you guys help me carry Zuko to Appa's saddle?"

"Fine…" Sokka replies unenthusiastically. Aang grabs Zuko's flaccid body by the shoulders and Sokka grabs the firebender by his feet. Zuko's body droops in the middle and his head hangs forward. He is kind of heavy to Aang and Sokka.

"Toph, help us?"

"Sure thing." Toph smirks and earthbends them an earth elevator, with all of them on it. They are at the same height as Appa's saddle; Sokka and Aang place Zuko on Appa's saddle. Toph and Sokka sit in the saddle, too, but Aang sits at the driver's seat. They take off.

* * *

Appa approaches the rest of the group. _Thud. _Appa has landed. Katara hears the sound and turns to see Appa, and she runs from her dad to greet Appa and his passengers. "Aang you're back." Katara says. Katara looks up to see Sokka and Toph get off of Appa's saddle rather disappointed and sees that there's another person lying on the saddle. "Umm… Who is that person on Appa?" Katara concerned and curious asks.

"Well you see," Toph answers right after jumping off Appa, "He's one of my friends. We found him while we were escaping."

"Maybe I should go check on your friend," Katara asks, "because he's just lying there? I can–"

"NO!" Sokka yells while holding Katara back by her shoulders. "Not now!"

"But why Sokka?" Katara asks as she stares at Sokka with a questioning look.

Aang realizes where this is going and cuts in, "Because Katara there's this huge line of airships coming, and I wasn't even able to defeat the Firelord." Aang stares at the ground ashamed. "I don't know what to do now?"

They look up and see the airships right above them. The bottom of one opens up and drops metal cylinders. One explodes right next to them, causing a landslide from the cliff, and Sokka yells, "Toph! Earthbend! NOW!" A slab of earth extrudes from the cliffside, covering them from the falling rocks. More bombs fall. Toph bends supports from the ground to keep the slab from breaking. Eventually, the bombs stop falling, and the airships move away.

Everyone stares at the airships curiously, wondering where they're going. Sokka is alarmed when he realizes where the airships are going and exclaims, "Wait! Guys! They're heading to the beach! Oh man!" Everyone exchanges glances and gives each other the 'What! Oh no…'

Aang with determination opens his glider and ascends into the air. He is astonished at the sight of the vast number of airships. He slices a couple and they fall down, but there are too many. Disappointed, he glides down and breaks the news to the invasion force, "There's too many of them… I can't destroy them."

Hakoda, having heard what Aang said, limps over to Aang and replies, "I guess we surrender, then."

"What! Dad are you serious! Ugh… This all my fault…" Sokka responds surprised and disappointed, while hitting the palm of his hand to his forehead.

"No Sokka, just listen, they knew we were coming here. The best thing to do is surrender, so nobody else gets hurt."

"So what do we do?"

"You kids go and escape on Appa, because without the avatar we wouldn't have any hope." Aang looks at everybody and sighs. At this point in time the airships start to bomb the beach.

Everyone hugs and says their goodbyes. They hope that everything is going to turn out right. Toph, Theo, the Duke, Haru, Katara, and Sokka get in the saddle, while Aang jumps on Appa's head. Aang then says, almost in tears, in a way of thanking all of the invasion people, "Thank you one and all for coming. Appa yip-yip!" Appa soars into the air.

* * *

Two minutes later, they are three miles away, high in the sky, and Katara asks Toph, "Toph, can I check on your friend?" She turns and cringes a little. His hair unkempt, his blood-stained, ragged clothing, his uneven breaths, and the cuts on his arms and torso are what she is uneasy about. He definitely was not okay.

"Yeah. I think he needs it." Toph replies.

Katara crawls toward the 'friend' of Toph, and as she turns over Zuko's limp body, she sees the trademarked scar and realizes who it is. She drops him down yells, "Zuko!" Everyone stares at Katara, except Zuko who just lies there. "WHY is HE here!" Aang starts blushing, smiling awkwardly, and chuckling. Her eyes are wide as she glares at Toph.

Toph hides her head behind her legs and smiles. "Ahh, Sugarqueen…" Toph whispers, still smiling.

* * *

_**P.S. **1,068__ words. I rewrote it, instead of doing my homework. I'll do it tomorrow… A.K.A. after midnight… ;) YAY! It's better now, maybe…. And it's 2 ½ pages! :D Are my characters in character?_


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